With one of the best road records in the country, the College of Charleston men’s basketball team (11-5, 3-1 SoCon) will embark on a tough three-game Southern Conference road swing this week. First up, will be a date with crosstown rival The Citadel (3-11, 0-4 SoCon) on Monday, Jan. 14 at McAlister Field House. Tipoff between the Cougars and Bulldogs is set for 7:30 p.m. (ET) and the game will be televised on the Charleston Sports Network locally on MyTV Charleston and carried nationally on ESPN3/WatchESPN.com. CofC is coming off an 86-59 victory over Chattanooga on Jan. 12, while The Citadel is looking to bounce back from a 69-65 setback against Samford. Monday will mark the 89th all-time meeting between to the two crosstown schools and a first-ever meeting between two good friends off the court in CofC Head Coach Doug Wojcik and Citadel Head Coach Chuck Driesell. The Cougars’ travel plans this week also includes trips to Georgia Southern on Jan. 17 and preseason league favorite Davidson on Jan. 19.

THE CITADEL AT A GLANCE

The Citadel is currently on a 10-game losing stretch dating back to a 74-61 loss to Radford on Nov. 24. The Bulldogs started off the season 3-1 with wins over Virginia Military (84-76) on Nov. 10, Montreat College (62-45) on Nov. 14 and Union College (92-50) on Nov. 17. They are led by senior big man Mike Groselle, who is averaging 13.9 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. Both of The Citadel’s last two SoCon games have been decided by five points or less. The Bulldogs currently rank No. 71 nationally in assists per game (14.9).

WATCH MYTV CHARLESTON

Local affiliate MyTV Charleston can be viewed locally over the air on Channel 36.1, on Channel 36 for DirecTV, Dish Network and AT&T U-verse subscribers as well as Channel 13 for Comcast, Knology and Time Warner cable subscribers in the Charleston, South Carolina, television market. MyTV Charleston also reaches as far as the Orangeburg, Walterboro and Georgetown areas.

WATCH ESPN3

ESPN3 is ESPN’s live multi-screen sports network, a 24/7 destination that delivers thousands of global sports events annually and accessible online via WatchESPN.com. It is currently available to approximately 70 million homes at no additional cost to fans who receive their high-speed Internet connection or video subscription from an affiliated service provider. The network is also available at no cost to approximately 21 million U.S. college students and U.S.-based military personnel via computers connected to on-campus educational networks and on-base military networks. It is also accessible through ESPN on Xbox LIVE to Gold level members and on smartphones and tablets via the WatchESPN app through an affiliated provider.

The Cougars hold a 10-game advantage in the all-time series with The Citadel, 49-39, dating back to a 25-7 decision over the Bulldogs in 1901, and have won 18 of the last 21 meetings between the two Lowcountry schools. CofC is currently on a four-game winning streak in the series including back-to-back regular-season conference series sweeps in 2010-11 and 2011-12.

LAST 10 GAMES IN THE SERIES

W, 55-47, at McAlister Field House on 2/25/12 (+8)

W, 83-64 at TD Arena on 12/1/11 (+19)

W, 85-63 at McAlister Field House on 2/17/11 (+22)

W, 87-66 at TD Arena on 1/15/11 (+21)

L, 65-72 at TD Arena on 2/8/10 (-7)

W, 61-55 at McAlister Field House on 1/9/10 (+6)

L, 58-72 at TD Arena on 2/14/09 (-14)

L, 63-72 at McAlister Field House on 1/24/09 (-9)

W, 66-48 at North Charleston Coliseum^ on 3/7/08 (+18)

W, 63-48 at John Kresse Arena on 2/4/08 (+15)

^SoCon Tournament

COUGAR SIDEBARS

• Coach Wojcik has never faced The Citadel in his eight years as a Division I head coach, but is now 3-2 lifetime versus Southern Conference opponents. Prior to taking over the helm of the CofC program, Wojcik had only faced a team from the league once – a home loss at Tulsa to Appalachian State (0-1) in 2010-11. He is currently 3-1 versus league foes in his first year and CofC’s final year in the SoCon.

• Coach Wojcik and Citadel Head Coach Chuck Driesell have known each other for years and are the best of friends off the court. They were roommates While Wojcik and his family were in the transition of moving from Tulsa to Charleston, his sons, Paxson (12) and Denham (10), attended Citadel Basketball Camp this past summer at McAlister Field House.

• Wojcik is a 1987 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and went on to complete his five-year military commitment following graduation. He served as an assistant coach at the Naval Academy Prep School (NAPS) in Newport, R.I. At the time, the NAPS team was coached by Driesell. The two coaches were roommates and developed a friendship that still exists today.

“Chuck is one of the funniest guys I know in my life. It’s a mutual respect relationship. I’ll always be there for him and he will always be there for me. What a nice thing to have in town, when most people when you lose, don’t know what to say to you. You may as well have something on your face. He is a guy in town where I can talk to him and he can talk to me. In the world of sports, it’s wonderful to have that kind of relationship.” – Coach Wojcik

• During the summer months, it’s not unusual to see both the CofC and Citadel squads play pick-up basketball games in the practice gym or TD Arena, which makes it a unique experience to have three NCAA Division I schools in the Lowcountry area along with Charleston Southern.

• With the win, the Cougars take a 17-11 advantage in the all-time series with Chattanooga. They have now won five of the last six meetings between the two schools. It was the team’s third 20-or-more point rout of the Mocs in the last six games of the series.

• CofC recorded its highest-scoring offensive output (86 points) and largest margin of victory over an opponent (+27) this season.

• Anthony Stitt registered his fourth career 20-point game with a game-high 20 points versus Chattanooga. He turned in his career-best 15 first-half points. Stitt previously scored 13 of his career-high 23 points versus UMass at the Battle 4 Atlantis in the first half as a freshman on Nov. 26, 2011.

• Adjehi Baru recorded his fifth career double-double with 13 points and a game-high 10 rebounds. It was his fourth double-double of the season and second time in back-to-back games with one this year.

• Andrew Lawrence dished out a career-high tying 10 assists with just two turnovers against Chattanooga. It marked his second career double-figure assist game next to 10 against Central Florida at the Battle 4 Atlantis on Nov. 24, 2011.

• CofC scored a season-high 50 points in the first half against Chattanooga and tied its largest lead of the season over an opponent entering the half (+26) along with leading by 26 versus Towson in its season opener on Nov. 9.

• The Cougars celebrated the 30th anniversary of their 1983 NAIA National Championship title with members of the team present on CofC Basketball Alumni Weekend including former head coach John Kresse and standouts Steve Yetman and Greg Mack.

COUGAR SOUND BITES

“I talk to (Citadel Head Coach) Chuck (Driesell) three-to-four times a week. I think he is doing a nice job with his team and staying positive. It is a traditional game – a classic game for Charleston. I think our fans really respect The Citadel. I’m all about rivalries. I’ve been a part of some of the best college rivalries in my coaching career – Army-Navy, Duke-Carolina, Indiana-Notre Dame and Michigan-Michigan State. I’m looking forward to honoring that rivalry in town. Hopefully, there will be a good crowd on Monday night and we will play well.” – CofC Head Coach Doug Wojcik on his first taste of the intercity rivalry with The Citadel

“We know we’re going to get their best game. They’re a big rival for us and they get pretty pumped up whenever we play, especially at their gym. I know they’re going to have a big crowd there.” – Junior Forward Trent Wiedeman on the quick turnaround to play at The Citadel on Monday night

“We need to come out with the same mentality as we did against Chattanooga. We will need to jump on them from the start and keep pounding them from there. Our goal is to be in the NCAA Tournament, so we’re just working on getting there (through our game-by-game experiences in conference play).” – Sophomore Guard Anthony Stitt on continuing the momentum from the Chattanooga win into the team’s upcoming three-game SoCon road swing

About the author

Michael "Beach Mick" Hudson is the founder and Editor of Beach Carolina Magazine. Living along the coast of North Carolina, Mike has a passion for the beach and loves to bring news and events of the Carolinas to others around the world.

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